On Philosophy as a Spiritual Exercise

Philip Goodchild is Professor of Religion and Philosophy in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Nottingham, UK. He is the author of Gilles Deleuze and the Question of Philosophy, Deleuze and Guattari: An Introduction to the Politics of Desire, Capitalism and Religion: The Price of Piety, and Theology of Money. He is also currently a Senior Fellow of the Rethinking Capitalism Initiative, University of California Santa Cruz, USA.

"This excellent introduction to the idea of philosophy as a spiritual exercise or 'way of life' engages us from the start through its mixture of literary genres and the charm of its writing which nevertheless carries the charge of a compelling passion. Goodchild recalls philosophers to their ancient vocation: to examine and expose assumptions that shape people's lives, sometimes disastrously. He asks whether the failure of philosophers to examine and expose their own assumptions has brought them into collusion with, and uncritical bondage to, conceptions of life, reason, and value which have had terrible consequences, moral and political, economic and ecological." - Michael McGhee, Honorary Senior Fellow, University of Liverpool, UK "Very few writers today are willing, in an age of conformity and uniformity, to experiment. How rare it is to read a book that is both original in thought and style. Using Plato's Symposium as his guide, Goodchild reinvigorates the original practice of philosophy for our times as a spiritual journey of self-questioning and discovery." - William Large, President of the British Society of Phenomenology, UK

• An Invitation: Alcibiades Editor's Preface 1. Thinking and Life: The Speech of Phaedrus 2. Ends and Illusions: The Speech of Pausanias 3. Hypocrisy: The Speech of Eryximachus 4. Dispositions and Interests: The Speech of Aristophanes 5. Mutual Attention: The Speech of Agathon 6. Death and Love: The Speech of Socrates Conclusion: Alcibiades' Confession Appendix: Philosophy as a Spiritual Exercise